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Street Talk Newsletter

Top 10 for Police Relationships

These 10 tips are based on my experience as a police wife of seven years, my knowledge and experience as a therapist, and from my research into what makes police relationships work. These tips also work for partners who are not married, and for lesbian and gay couples as well. Enjoy!

1.See any challenges or conflicts as being on the same team, not opponents. When challenges come up, even if you are upset with your partner (or vice versa), remember that you are on the same team. There is no “right or wrong,” and blaming the other person (or yourself) does not solve the issue. Resolving difficult situations takes teamwork and collaboration. Keep this in mind when you bring up concerns or challenges to be discussed; your word choice and tone can make a huge difference! If it’s hard for you to constructively bring up your concerns, take some time to allow your anger to cool off, and then try again.

At Your Service: iPad Project - "Like a Clinician in Your Car"

During the 22 years of BHR’s existence, there have been countless examples of officers encountering individuals exhibiting potential signs of a mental health issue. We have found that hospitalization or detainment is not always the best option in many of these situations. Therefore, officers have 24-hour access to BHR’s traditional mobile outreach. Although the model has been successful, it requires the officer to wait with the individual until the clinician arrives.

While BHR’s average arrival time of 45 to 60 minutes is without comparison, there is the need to balance that wait time with the efficient use of the officer’s time. In response to this need, BHR implemented the Virtual Mobile Crisis Intervention (VMCI) project in February 2017.

CIT Corner: NAMI and CIT

NAMI St. Louis was instrumental in establishing CIT in St. Louis County in 2002. Since 2003, NAMI St. Louis assigned a full time staff member to serve as a full-time program administrator. The organization now helps support four Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Councils that serve seven counties in Missouri: St. Louis, Jefferson, Warren, Lincoln, Franklin, St. Charles, and the City of St. Louis.

As of December 2017, NAMI St. Louis has facilitated 127, 40-hour POST-Certified Basic CIT Training Courses, with a total of 4,970 law enforcement officers and first responders being trained. As of December 2017, NAMI St. Louis has also facilitated and trained an additional 1,899 law enforcement officers through the numerous Advanced In-service training courses offered each year. These law enforcement officers now respond to more than 3,000 mental health crisis incidents annually in the St. Louis region.

Surviving Secondary Trauma

“I want to be part of the solution.” “I want to help others.” “I want to serve my community.”

People enter the law enforcement profession for many noble reasons, but often their decision boils down to the basic idea of “I want to help others.” or “I want to make a positive impact.” or “I want to make a difference that will last.” But at what cost? The cost is something they have thought little about or have no way to measure. What is the cost to the individual and the community when we take normal men and women and train them to become helpers, servants and warriors? These individuals who run toward what most in the community desperately run to escape? But what do they experience, what do they see, and why do we expect them to not be impacted in their personal lives? Do we require too much, with too little thought of their survival?

Street Report: Mental Health First Aid Expansion

Mental Health First Aid is the help offered to a person developing a mental health problem or experiencing a mental health crisis. The first aid is given until appropriate treatment and support are received or until the crisis resolves.

This training tool for law enforcement came to the St. Louis County Police Department in March 2014, when Sgt. Jeremy Romo recognized the program as beneficial for the department. Six months later, Sgt. Romo attained instructor certification and brought the newest “Public Safety Module” version of the training to the St. Louis County and Municipal Police Academy. This event marked the beginning of the integration of the program within law enforcement agencies in the state of Missouri.

At Your Service: Youth Behavioral Health Liaison

The Youth Behavioral Health Liaison position was created to assist school personnel in understanding, managing and addressing the behavioral health needs of students who are not connected to behavioral health services and who come to the repeated attention of school personnel or law enforcement. This initiative also includes youth who are not enrolled in school, but need services. It also focuses on the transitional ages of 15 to 20, when youth still need support and access to services while transitioning into adulthood. This Liaison program provides services to these youth who reside in St. Charles, Lincoln, Warren and Franklin Counties.

CIT Corner: Kudos to CIT and Officer Wellness Expansion

The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department is experiencing a huge growth. In May 2017, I was selected as the CIT Coordinator and the Officer Wellness Program Coordinator. Our CIT program has been in existence since 2003. We are making good strides in its development, with more than 900 trained officers! We are maintaining steady growth, which is proving productive and successful. Our young officers are becoming the catalysts for this program. They absorb this new information and immediately start using it with excellent success.

Fresh Perspective on Stress Management

One thing I have learned as a counselor, and in my own life, is this: Stress management is more than a checklist of “shoulds.” Lists can be helpful, but I have seen many individuals check off their stress management “lists” (eat well, get enough sleep, avoid alcohol/tobacco, meditate, do yoga, exercise, get a massage, play golf, etc.) and still be miserable and completely stressed out. What is missing is a big picture perspective, and this shift in perspective about managing stress can completely shift your quality of life.

Stress management is ultimately about balancing your energy.

Sounds a little too simplistic, right? The concept is simple, but making the shifts to balance your energy can be a bit more challenging. Bear with me for a minute, as I explain a little bit more.

Video: Your Brain Under Stress

Stress isn’t fun for anybody, but it’s something everyone experiences. You already know some stress is good. It can give a burst of energy or extra focus. But chronic stress negatively changes our brain’s function, size and structure. Social skills, ability to make decisions and memory can be negatively impacted. The good news is that we can reverse the negative impact of stress. To better understand what’s actually happening in your body, check out this 4-minute video from TED Ed: How Stress Affects Your Brain and What You Can Do About It.

Street Report: Leaving Work Behind

Here's what three local officers want to share with you about making time to manage stress...

I deal with the stress of my job in a few different ways. One of the main ways is that I have trusted people I can talk to both inside and outside of law enforcement. For me, a "go to" person inside law enforcement helps because if I’m venting about something, chances are they 100% understand why I’m upset about things. Having someone outside of law enforcement helps because when I vent to that person, he/she doesn’t ask a bunch of questions. That person lets me say what I need to say, and then we drop it.